The Rising Tide Lifts All Corn Fields: Indiana’s Collaborative Approach to Entrepreneurship and Why it Works

This article is a guest post from Chelsea Linder, VP of Operations at gener8tor.

When I was originally tasked with running Indiana’s first publicly-accessible, application-based accelerator, gBETA, in 2018, I had no idea how I would be able to build relationships with stakeholders and founders across the entire state. Little did I know that Indiana already had a super strong network of entrepreneurs and support organizations collaborating state-wide, something which would continue to grow and strengthen every day. Based on Elevate’s 2020 Venture Report, VC deals throughout the state increased nearly 20% in 2020 despite the ongoing pandemic. Indiana leads by example and shows what it really means to have a state-wide approach to entrepreneurship in a way other states can learn from.

Something we commonly hear at gener8tor is in order to have a state-wide collaboration, there has to be a single body or party that is “in charge” and pulling all the strings to make collaboration happen. This can be effective, but the opposite can be true as well. Indiana has some fantastic statewide players such as the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, Indiana Small Business Development Centers, and Elevate Ventures, playing these key roles across the state. There are also smaller groups from every corner of the state welcoming each other and working together in 2021 for unique projects I’d like to highlight in this post.

• Through a grant from the Lily Endowment’s Charting the Future for Indiana’s Colleges and Universities program, Butler University and Purdue University are partnering with other universities across the state to form an innovation engine for transforming higher ed learning.
• The Mill and NSWC Crane signed a five year agreement to increase access to intellectual property and subject matter expertise. The Mill will help startups license and commercialize Crane Intellectual Property.
• Indy Tech leaders, including Techpoint and Zylo, and the United Way of Central Indiana paired up to run Tech Loves Indy, an ongoing event to facilitate new and disruptive approaches to ending generational poverty.
• Kent Lanum of the Paul Ogle Foundation worked with Render Capital to bring Elevate Southeast Indiana to The Root coworking space in New Albany.
• Start Fort Wayne, the Fort Wayne Community Foundation and GFW are in the midst of a study to determine local entrepreneur needs that will be included in the All-In-Allen 20 year strategic plan.
• The FuseNEI Alliance is bringing together all entrepreneur support organizations across Northeast Indiana to work collectively, affording founders a one-stop-shop for resources.
• We at gener8tor are working with partners across the state including the Battery Innovation Center, 5G Zone, Indy Autonomous Challenge, The Heritage Group, and more to bring 5 new gBETA programs to the state. These programs will not only serve local entrepreneurs but also bring new startups into the state to access the support and resources available here.

Indiana’s collaborative approach has resulted in a record number of seed stage investments in 2020, and a record setting 2021 so far. Techpoint’s Q2 2021 VC report states: “Between April 1 and June 30, 2021, Indiana tech companies publicly announced capital raises for a total of more than $193 million and one organization announced a grant of $5 million. Those activities sent the total quarterly investments over the $198 million mark. Additionally, ten Indiana tech companies were involved in mergers and acquisitions during the quarter.” It’s easy to understand how Indiana’s startup ecosystem continues to grow and thrive when you understand how so many different players are working together statewide to raise the tides.